​Three local athletes will be participating in the upcoming Slopestyle and Big Air Events at Titus Mountain as part of the 37th Annual Empire State Winter Games. Daniel Badgley, Tucker Lawrence, and Jason Stepnoski will all represent Titus Mountain Family Ski Center this Friday for the Big Air competition and Saturday for the Slopestyle competition.

​​“We are a family mountain who exists because of support from our local community,” said Zachary White, general manager of Titus Mountain. “It feels good to give back to some of the members of our community who have called Titus Mountain their home for years.”

Badgley and Stepnoski, snowboarders, and Lawrence, a skier, all started their passion for the slopes at Titus Mountain from young ages and call Titus their home mountain.

Badgley compete in the 2012 USASA National Championship

Daniel ​Badgley started riding at the mountain when he was 5 years old, tagging along with his sister who was part of a Titus Mountain after-school program. He is no stranger to competition; in 2013 he took home the gold in the slopestyle and boardercross events of the Empire State Winter Games and placed first in the 2014 Slopestyle. He has also competed in the USASA Nationals from 2012-2014 and qualified for and competed in the Volcom World Championship Rail Jam at Mammoth Mountain in 2015.

Stepnoski hits a rail in a local Winter Wars Rail Jam event.

​Jason Stepnoski picked up the sport from his older brother when he was 8 years old and has continued his passion in his career choice. Stepnoski is currently the Terrain Park Manager at Titus Mountain and aides in snowmaking when needed. He started competing in USASA events when he was 16 and hopes to return to competition with a win in the Winter Games.

Lawrence is interviewed for a Titus Mountain video.

Tucker Lawrence comes from a family of skiers and began hitting the slopes at 2 years old. He is the youngest of Titus sponsored athletes at 17 years old. Lawrence has recently stepped up in competitions and took 1st place in the most recent USASA Adirondack Series Rail Jam event at West Mountain.

“I have worked a lot with these three gentlemen in the past few weeks as we prepare for the Winter Games,” said Brittany Taylor, director of marketing. “They are stand-up young men and an asset to our Titus community, as well as the Malone community as a whole. We couldn’t ask for better people to represent us this weekend.”

Those who would like to come out and show support of local competitors can do so this Friday and Saturday at Titus Mountain. Spectator admission is free. More information can be found at www.titusmountain.com/eswg.

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